Thetford Man, 79, Sentenced to Prison for Wire Fraud

A 79-year-old Thetford man was sentenced to 18 months in federal prison yesterday for embezzling hundreds of thousands of dollars from a Dartmouth College fraternity and a Bridgewater fishing club, a federal prosecutor said.

Bruce D. McAllister, who pleaded guilty to committing wire fraud while serving as treasurer for Alpha Theta House Corp. and the Meccawe Club, was placed on three years supervised release after he leaves prison, and was ordered to pay more than $800,000 in restitution, Assistant U.S. Attorney Gregory Waples said in an interview.

Judge William Sessions III imposed the sentence during a hearing in U.S. District Court in Burlington yesterday.

McAllister, who is in failing health, is scheduled to report to prison in January.

Due to McAllister’s unspecified medical troubles, Sessions recommended that he serve his time at Federal Medical Center Devens in central Massachusetts, which provides for inmates with long-term care problems, Waples said.

McAllister’s attorney, George Ostler of Norwich, did not respond to a request for comment yesterday.

McAllister, a former financial officer at Dartmouth College and 1952 Dartmouth graduate, exploited his position with the non-profits to siphon money for at least 25 years, starting in the mid 1980s, according to court documents.

He cut checks to himself, his wife, and his business, Sugartop Sawmill, and apparently operated with little oversight, according to court documents.

Authorities do not believe McAllister has the money to repay the full $800,000 restitution amount, Waples said; McAllister will pay 10 percent of his monthly earnings instead.

“We’re satisfied with the outcome,” Waples said.

The Meccawe Club is a private trout fishing club that has a 700 acre spread in Bridgewater.

McAllister was also sued by both organizations in state civil court.

Mark Davis can be reached at mcdavis@vnews.com or 603-727-3304.

CORRECTION

This article has been amended to correct an earlier error. The following correction ran in the Thursday, Dec. 6 edition of the Valley News:

Thetford resident Bruce D. McAllister, who was recently sentenced to 18 months in prison on a wire fraud charge, is a member of the Dartmouth College Class of 1954. A story in the Nov. 27 Valley News provided the wrong graduating class.